Pukpuks happy to be in international rugby again

PAPUA New Guinea take on host nation, Hong Kong today in the opening round Regal Hotels Cup of Nations rugby union tournament. The team looks to build on the success of last year’s Oceania Cup win in preparation for the World Cup qualifiers. Speaking at the Hong Kong Rugby Union-hosted Cup of Nations press conference, coach Sydney Wesley, spoke on it being an opportunity for the Pukpuks to gage their game especially playing against the likes of reigning tournament champions, Russia and other participating teams, Zimbabwe and Hong Kong. Pukpuks captain Tisa Kautu said the national side rarely played 15s matches overseas and he was proud to lead the side into competition. “It’s the first time in years that a PNG 15s team has come to Hong Kong to play and I’m very proud of making it here,” Kautu said. The team arrived in Hong Kong on Monday evening and have been training at Kings Park since. Defending champions, Russia, have also come with a strong team as this will be an opportunity for them to prepare for the European competition. Games will be uploaded on Youtube 2 hours after the match with the final match against Zimbabwe to be live streamed. Fixtures: Fri, Nov 11 – Hong Kong v PNG; Mon, Nov 14 – PNG v Russia; Sun, Nov 19 – PNG v Zimbabwe.